amalgamate β When two or more things, especially organizations, amalgamate or are amalgamated, they become one large thing.
anneal β to temper or toughen (something) by heat treatment
bake β If you bake, you spend some time preparing and mixing together ingredients to make bread, cakes, pies, or other food which is cooked in the oven.
brace β If you brace yourself for something unpleasant or difficult, you prepare yourself for it.
buttress β Buttresses are supports, usually made of stone or brick, that support a wall.
cake β A cake is a sweet food made by baking a mixture of flour, eggs, sugar, and fat in an oven. Cakes may be large and cut into slices or small and intended for one person only.
callous β A callous person or action is very cruel and shows no concern for other people or their feelings.
cement β Cement is a grey powder which is mixed with sand and water in order to make concrete.
close β When you close something such as a door or lid or when it closes, it moves so that a hole, gap, or opening is covered.
clot β A clot is a sticky lump that forms when blood dries up or becomes thick.
coagulate β When a liquid coagulates, it becomes very thick.
compact β Compact things are small or take up very little space. You use this word when you think this is a good quality.
congeal β When a liquid congeals, it becomes very thick and sticky and almost solid.
consolidate β If you consolidate something that you have, for example power or success, you strengthen it so that it becomes more effective or secure.
contract β A contract is a legal agreement, usually between two companies or between an employer and employee, which involves doing work for a stated sum of money.
crystallise β to form into crystals; cause to assume crystalline form.
curdle β If milk or eggs curdle or if you curdle them, they separate into different bits.
dry β free from moisture or excess moisture; not moist; not wet: a dry towel; dry air.
firm β not soft or yielding when pressed; comparatively solid, hard, stiff, or rigid: firm ground; firm texture.
indurate β to make hard; harden, as rock, tissue, etc.: Cold indurates the soil.
jell β to congeal; become jellylike in consistency.
nerve β one or more bundles of fibers forming part of a system that conveys impulses of sensation, motion, etc., between the brain or spinal cord and other parts of the body.
ossify β to convert into or cause to harden like bone.
petrify β to convert into stone or a stony substance.
precipitate β to hasten the occurrence of; bring about prematurely, hastily, or suddenly: to precipitate an international crisis.
press β to force into service, especially naval or military service; impress.
reinforce β to strengthen with some added piece, support, or material: to reinforce a wall.
set β to put (something or someone) in a particular place: to set a vase on a table.
settle β to appoint, fix, or resolve definitely and conclusively; agree upon (as time, price, or conditions).
solidify β to make solid; make into a hard or compact mass; change from a liquid or gaseous to a solid form.
starch β a white, tasteless, solid carbohydrate, (C 6 H 1 0 O 5) n , occurring in the form of minute granules in the seeds, tubers, and other parts of plants, and forming an important constituent of rice, corn, wheat, beans, potatoes, and many other vegetable foods.
steel β any of various modified forms of iron, artificially produced, having a carbon content less than that of pig iron and more than that of wrought iron, and having qualities of hardness, elasticity, and strength varying according to composition and heat treatment: generally categorized as having a high, medium, or low-carbon content.